Franz Kafka’s Former House to Open in May

In 1897, the redevelopment of the Jewish Town also affected the house situated on the corner of Kaprova Street and Maiselova Street. In this house was born on July 3rd, 1883 the major writer Franz Kafka.

He actually lived here with his parents only for a short time, until 1885, when the Kafka family moved to the house on Wenceslas Square.

His former home is due to open to the public in May following a 165.5 million crown reconstruction project that began in August 2017. It will host exhibition spaces, residential units, a museum and a cafè.

Franz was born July 3, 1883, to Hermann and Julie Kafka. In 1897 the house was damaged by a fire, and the entryway is the only original part. 

The Josefov neighborhood has other two locations where Kafka lived. The first was Zum Schiff (“at the ship”) at Pařížská 36. The house was demolished in 1945 but is noteworthy because it played a role in The Metamorphosis: the novella was written here and the arrangement of the rooms in the story matched the building’s layout. His story “The Judgement” came to light here as well, in the night of Sept. 22–23, 1912. A hotel is where the house used to stand.

Kafka lived in an apartment that he rented in Bílkova 10. Kafka wrote in his notes how difficult it because he could hear all the noises made in the house, making it impossible to concentrate on writing.

He particularly enjoyed house number 22 in the Golden Lane (Zlatá ulička) at Prague Castle. He rented this tiny house with his sister Ottla in 1916 and kept it until summer 1917. While there he wrote almost all the stories that were published in the 1920 collection A Country Doctor. 

In Malá Strana you can find the Schönborn Palace at Tržiště 15. Although this is now the US Embassy, in March 1917 Kafka rented a two-room flat here and was living there when he was diagnosed with tuberculosis.

Author: red